The Pancha Tattva

People are their own best healers - Ayurveda believes that educating everyone adequately can help people to control their own health. No one can exactly understand subtle imbalance better than one’s own perception. Ayurveda tracks from unusual recognitions to deep into the fundamental constituents balancing which will help to heal and prevent illness. The fundamental constituents that make up our ultimate really are called the “Panch tatva” or the “Panch Mahabuta” – the five great gross elements of life. “Panch” means five and “tatva” or “Mahabuta” means element or reality.

Building blocks of life:

The panch mahabutas are - Ether, Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. These have come together in different proportions to bring the whole universe. These elements are the most basic aspect of anything existing- living or non living, visible or invisible.

Ether (Akash) - Ether symbolizes the space. The emptiness within represents ether element. Some of the space elements in body are orifices in ears, nostrils, anus, mouth etc. It is the element which cannot be experienced.

Air (Vayu) - Air element symbolizes the quality of expansion or repulsive forces. This element is represented by the air associated with pulmonary system eg- breathing and the air associated with intestinal system eg- winds in belly and bowels, etc.

Fire (Agni) - Fire element symbolizes the quality of heat or energy. All energy related mechanisms such as digestion, warmth, aging, physical exercise etc. are fire elements.

Water (Jal) - Water element symbolizes the quality of liquidity or relative motion.  Any matter where relative motion is noticeable represents water element. In our body blood, sweat, urine, pus, phlegm, tears, mucus etc. are water elements.

Earth (Prithvi) - Earth element symbolizes the quality of solidity or the binding forces. Anything formed by attractive forces which are noticeable represents earth element. Hair, bone, skin, flesh, organs etc are earth elements inside our body.

Out of all ether is considered as the subtlest form of matter. Ether mixes with eternity to form air a more experiential element. When air moves it generates heat - the fire element. Heat produces moisture which is water, an observable and denser element. Water creates the densest of all the elements – Earth.

Ayurveda - Holistic and personalized approach:

Balancing all the five elements in the body will balance everything at the material level and hence, the body as a whole. So, ayurvedic treatment starts by treating the root cause of the illness and sets everything in the manner it was made to be.  As everyone is unique in their constitution, everyone reacts or experiences a situation differently. Ayurvedic treatment is a personalized approach – not same for all but specific to an individual.

The general approach of Ayurvedic treatment involves three steps.

§            ▶The first step is to determine the constitution – Dosha or Prakriti

§            ▶The second step is to inspect the elemental cause of illness – Vikriti

§            ▶The third step is to recommend a therapeutic approach to balance the disturbed elements or doshas.

Treatment is done considering not only the individual constitution but also the constitution of the environmental factors such as season, the time of the day etc. The approach includes the use of herbs, foods, exercises, Yoga, lifestyle variations etc.

Matching natural cycle is Ayurvedic routine:

Ayurveda is the knowledge of life- it’s the script which speaks how the life should actually be lived. Ayurvedic treatment is not an option for the people severely troubled or diseased who followed every other option, nothing worked for them and ended up with following the ayurvedic remedies. Following ayurvedic practices in our lifestyle making it a routine, even without any pronounced illness will eventually make our body to have urges for whatever is actually right for us and whatever was actually intended. The changes are seen not only at the physical level but also at the mental or behavioural level for the better. Surpassing the unpleasant daily feelings that needed just a slight trigger to enter in and take the charge over entire you and drawing out whole energy, you will find yourself dealing things enthusiastically and cheerfully. It's, rightly said many times - Ayurveda not only nourishes body it nourishes the soul.